Week 18: "So, I heard you're taking quite the trip." **ADDRESS CHANGE**

October 14, 2013

Hey everyone!

SO, transfer calls came. Where do I begin...

This past week was a little full of anticipation and curiosity. As a second transfer missionary in my first city, just about everyone (including myself) pegged my staying vs. leaving at about 50/50. As you can probably imagine, I just really wanted to KNOW what I'd be doing. One day this past week, Elder Toole asked me where I'd want to go if I left. I said either Rotterdam or Zwolle (both in Nederland, where I have family heritage) or Groningen (where Elder Eastmond, my trainer, served for six months before coming to Kortrijk. He deemed it the 'promised land'). I really didn't know, though.

Last night, we got a call. I was told that my work here in Kortrijk is done, and it's time for me to go up north. FAR north. To Groningen, the northernmost city in our mission. I honestly couldn't believe it. Groningen is one of the largest cities in the Netherlands, and it is also one of the coldest. Look it up, if you have the chance. I'm excited as all get out, but I'm super sad to be leaving Kortrijk. I've learned a few things in Kortrijk, many regarding bikes, but also many about myself and what the Lord wants for me. These past two transfers have changed me, not only as a missionary, but as a person. In the movie "Joseph Smith, Prophet of the Restoration" (super good -- if you haven't seen it, member or not, it's free to watch online, and I highly recommend it), Joseph says, in the midst of the pioneers' hard work building the temple, "you know, the Lord isn't just building a temple. He's building us." Or something like that. And, that's one thing I've seen on my mission -- it isn't just to find others and help them build their relationship with Christ. He's also teaching me and helping me become something.

I don't have too much more time today, but this past week was a blur. Elder Toole and I set another baptismal date with an investigator, and we found some new people. The witness really did come after the trial of our faith. I really was excited for the things we'd do next transfer -- Kortrijk had become my 'promised land.' Also, it's gotten way colder this past week, and the humidity really seeps through your clothing. Needless to say, I can only imagine how Groningen will be. We actually talked about Groningen this past week -- "Man, it's so cold out. You're gonna have to buy a good jacket soon." "Yeah, I can only imagine what it's like up in Nederland. Like, way up in Groningen? It must be so cold!" "Good thing neither of us are there for the winter. We Belgium boys would freeze."

So is it.

My new address is as follows:

Elder John Bonney

DD Eisenhowerstraat 38

9728 RW Groningen

the Netherlands

Please don't send mail to the Kortrijk address anymore...because, it won't get to me for like a month. If you have sent anything in the past week, email me and let me know!

Well, on Wednesday, I do the longest transfer trip possible in the mission -- from the southernmost area to the northernmost. Wish me luck.

I love you all, and have a great week. Next time, I'll tell you all about the 'promised land.' Until then, keep calm and carry on.

--Elder Bonney

PS -- attached is...I don't know. I thought it was fitting at the time.

Week 17: "that was...BEAUTIFUL"

October 6, 2013

Hey, everyone!

How about conference this past weekend? I have to say, I've never looked forward to or enjoyed conference as much as I did yesterday. It was great. A great family in our branch, familie Leman, had us over for the whole day yesterday, and we got to watch the priesthood, Saturday afternoon, and Sunday morning sessions (in addition to fun times and food in between). The Sunday morning session we watched live. It's funny -- you hear people cheesily say something like, "no matter how far away we are, we're still looking at the same stars," or something like that. Well... no matter how far away we are, we probably watched the Sunday morning session at the same time. How's that for true Mormon affection?

This week wasn't too exciting, but we did give baptismal dates to a Sri Lankan couple we've been teaching! Elder Toole and I taught them on Tuesday, and we watched a video, "Our Heavenly Father's Plan," with them. You need to understand that that film (it's about 30 minutes long) is made by the church, and is about as cheesy and 80s as you can get. Watch it sometime. Elder Toole and I were literally trying not to bust up laughing the whole time (we'd never seen it before we showed it to them...mistake). Anyways, it finishes, and I'm just thinking, "I can't believe we just showed that to them, they're going to think we're ridiculous..." We ask them what they thought, and they just turn to us, in a state of glorious shock, and say, "that was...BEAUTIFUL." With all sincerity. It was great. They wanted us to come back on Friday, and we left the DVD with them. They watched it two more times, they loved it so much. Elder Bishop and I (on exchanges) came back on Friday and challenged them both to baptism. They accepted (but want to learn more first, so their date isn't for a month or so). That's just how we do it in Kortrijk.

Did anyone else realize that yesterday marks a whole year since President Monson made the announcement about the missionary age change? I can't believe it's been a year. So much has happened since then, and now I've already been out for almost four months. If he hadn't made that announcement when he did, I probably wouldn't be out yet. That's pretty weird to think about. I'm grateful for that announcement, and I'm also really grateful for all the great things that have happened in the past year, in and out of the mission field.

In a week, we get transfer calls! I'll find out if I'm staying here in Kortrijk for six more weeks, or if I'm off somewhere else. This transfer has definitely been an adventure -- going senior companion and taking over a city on my second transfer hasn't been easy, but it's definitely been a learning experience for which I'm thankful to have had. I'll let you guys know next time if:where I'm going!

Keep cool everyone, and have a great week. Tot zo.

--Elder Bonney

Week 16: "Don't think, with the last sheet in sight, that whoever comes next will be alright."

September 30, 2013

Hey guys! This week actually went by pretty quickly. It was nice. I can't believe that Monday is here already again... Time is a funny thing on a mission. Some weeks are like days; some are like months.

I'll have you all know that I managed to find a new bike for sale, not too expensive. Then, I went and bought a good lock. Like, a really good lock. Oh, fun fact: if you go to tell the police that your bike was stolen, and it didn't have a city tag or whatever on it, they will respond with, "Okay...? Go steal another! Just don't let us see." So, yeah. That's cool.

Between my bike getting stolen and me getting a new one, our thug less-active friend (who I will start referring to as 'Chile') let me borrow his 800 euro mountain bike. Which was awesome -- it works really well, and is really fun to ride. Except...one day, Elder Toole and I are riding home from an appointment with our ward mission leader. We somehow decide to start racing. Now, Chile's bike can go fast. Like, really fast. Elder Toole and I are cruising, then there's a light... I think I'll be one cool cat and skid to a quick stop. Chile's bike says otherwise -- its brakes work really well. When I brake before the light, the wheels both immediately stop, and the bike flips over, back wheel over front wheel. All I remember is Elder Toole lifting the bike off of me, and getting up, with torn suit pants and bloody hands. Oh, memories.

We went back down to Brussels this past Friday for legality reasons -- I picked up my Belgian residency card. There were about 25 missionaries there. Between the time we finished and when our train left, we had about 2 hours, so we got some food and went to see the famous gem of Brussels: the 'Mannekin Pis' statue. I don't know if I have been so disappointed by a statue... He's so small! I'll attach a picture. Like... I have no words to describe this. I knew he'd be a small guy, but I thought he'd be a little bigger.

On Wednesday, we spent most the day in Antwerpen for a zone conference. Our mission President (President Robinson), Sister Robinson, and President Boom (Antwerpen stake president) spoke. It was inspiring and enlightening. President Boom shared a common Dutch saying with us, which translates into "don't think, with the last sheet in sight, that whoever comes next will be alright." Yes, he is referring to toilet paper. But, he said that we can't make the assumption about the gospel that someone else will share it if we don't. Now is the time. We are the responsible ones. There are souls to be saved, and we're called to find them.

Missionary work is still hard, but good. I'm learning things that will help me throughout the rest of my life. If my companion and I are working hard and doing our best, then we are successful missionaries. And, if we can bring a few souls to Christ while we're at it, all the better.

Oh -- and I'm super stoked for Algemene Conferentie (General Conference). More stoked than I've ever been.

Stay cool, stay true.

--Elder Bonney

Elder Toole, Elder Bitters (who was in the MTC with Elder Toole and me), and yours truly, standing in front of the disappointing Mannekin Pis statue.

 Elder Cook and me, reunited at zone conference -- the dream team.

Week 15: "Dude, where's your bike?" "You have got to be kidding me."

September 23, 2013

Hey everyone!

Another week over. I wish I could say it was an especially exciting week... But, it wasn't. Though I will share some highlights.

So yes, my bike was stolen. Again. I don't know what it is, maybe I'm just really unlucky, but getting my bike stolen is rather annoying. As soon as I found out, I called up my thug less-active friend from Chile, who used to work in a bike store, to ask where a good second-hand bike store is. He came with a friend to go to this bike store with me and Elder Toole. They were asking 240 euro for a decent USED bike. Needless to say, I'm still working on my bicycle situation. Though our friend did say he had friends who could get me a really cheap, good bike...illegally. We had to decline his offer.

What else happened this week... Well, our previously golden investigator is now a Jehovah's Witness, super anti, and he thinks that "all Mormons are stupid." Elder Toole and I found a few new investigators. Just standard missionary work, really. I have no cool stories. Though, Elder Toole and I have been getting really close with the less-active members here in Kortrijk. They really are great people, just got a little sidetracked on the way. They're my favorite -- they invite us over for dinner, love to talk to us, and I'll miss them tons when I eventually leave.

The zone leaders came down from Antwerpen to do splits for a few hours on Thursday. It really made me realize how much this is the Lord's work and not our work. I was with a really good elder who is a few months away from the end of his mission. We were knocking some doors in a nearby town, where many people are Belgian, born and raised. And he couldn't understand ANYBODY, the dialect is so hard to understand. I then realized that I don't understand a lot of people in this area, either. Then, I took a step back to look at our situation in Kortrijk -- the Lord put two second transfer missionaries, who both started learning Dutch in June, in a city where we don't understand a lot of people, and a lot of people have trouble understanding us. No logical person would do that. But, He knows better. If we work hard, He'll provide the success. There are always miracles as a missionary. I've seen the Lord's hand more than once on my mission.

Well, back to the grind. Remember to pray for all the Lord's missionaries. We need it. Tot volgende keer.

Fight the good fight, finish the race, keep the faith. Or something like that.

--Elder Bonney

Week 14: "You guys are Polish, right?"

September 16, 2013

This week was definitely an improvement on last week. A slow week, but I feel good about it.

Elder Toole and I have been pushing onward and upward. We got dropped by a few investigators this week, and we ended up doing a lot of finding -- which entailed a lot of knocking doors. We made some good appointments for this week, but we ended up not teaching too much last week.

So on Saturday, Elder Toole and I followed the counsel of our ward mission leader and biked out to this little town, Rekkem, to do some finding. It was a 45 minute bike ride, and we were biking in some of the strangest rain I'd ever seen. EVER. (Thank you, Belgium.) It wasn't even raining hard -- it was like a really thick mist. Like 100 percent humidity. I'm pretty sure I got wet in places I didn't even know I had. Anyway, we get to Rekkem, and we knock doors for about four hours -- no success. No appointments made, no good potential investigators found. But, one guy did answer the door, and because of my accent when speaking Flemish (I sound a lot more genuine when speaking Nederland Dutch, but Flams is hard), he thought that Elder Toole and I were from Poland. Nope, just Mormons. Also irrelevantly relevant -- some guy came up to Elder Toole and I on the street and asked if we were twins. That was funny, because we don't think we look anything alike (maybe all Americans just look alike).

In church yesterday, I realized that every Sunday in Kortrijk thus far, I've been sitting with these four older ladies. They talk and joke with me, and I adore them (I'm sure they adore me, too -- how could they not?). It's like having a bunch of grandmas. It was a funny realization -- it's like I'm part of some exclusive club. I love it. When I eventually get transferred, I'll miss my Kortrijk Branch family.

Lately, I've been really thinking about my calling as a missionary -- missionaries are called to be representatives of the Lord, Jesus Christ. 'Representative' is a big word that means a lot and carries a lot of responsibility. So, one of my goals has become to be as Christlike as I can, especially when dealing with those I teach. It's not easy, and I'm not perfect. I often wonder if I appear to stiff or fake, though I do my best to be loving and real. But, yesterday evening, Elder Toole and I were sitting in our apartment. An inactive member (the same one who ripped the porn off his walls six weeks ago or so) called to talk to me, and said that he was having a rough night, and he "just needed to talk to a friend," someone he knew cared about him. Few things touch your heart like that; a moment like that makes the whole week, however long, worth it. "Representative of Jesus Christ" is starting to mean a whole lot more to me than it used to.

This Gospel is true. It changes lives, and I'm blessed to have the opportunity to share the great message that He lives and loves us, more than we could ever know.

Stay true.

--Elder Bonney

Week 13: "So what do you use to brush your teeth?!"

September 9, 2013

Well, it had to get hard at some point.

This past week has probably been THE most stressful week of my life (though that is debatable). Where to begin...

Well, this past Wednesday, I said goodbye to Elder Eastmond and welcomed Elder Toole. Essentially, I said goodbye to experience and welcomed responsibility. Before I say anything about my companionship, I would like to preface it with this: I love Elder Toole; he has a heart of gold and is a great, sincere missionary. Now that I've said that... We simply cannot overlook the fact that neither he nor I has much experience. Since I've already been in Kortrijk for a transfer, I'm expected to 'take over' the city. Speaking a foreign language. Of which my companion speaks even less. But, I started off optimistically -- this would be the "transfer of miracles," I said. It would have to be. Shortly after I made that statement, I was informed by this crazy excommunicated lady who attends our branch that our star investigator has become a Jehovah's Witness and no longer wants to meet with us (so far unconfirmed). And, one of our Muslim friends told me I need to change, or I'd face hellfire.

It's been a rough week.

A crazy man came up to Elder Toole and I this past week when we were walking somewhere. He started talking AT us in rapid Flemish. I could understand a portion of what he said, but he was using a lot of words I didn't know. Elder Toole had no clue what was going on, and this crazy man could tell, so he switched to English. Then he told us about how 1) our solar system is going to collide with another solar system this December, 2) the governments of the world know this and have prepared large shelters which can only house half a billion people, and 3) said governments are thus trying to kill off 6.5 billion people so there are no problems with the shelters. He then proceeded to tell us how the governments are killing people -- the obviously fake war in Syria, cancer-causing cell phones, and many other ways -- including through fluoride. Those sneaky governments! Our friend (his name is Maxim, but don't tell anyone; the Belgian government might find out and try to shut our freedom fighter down) told us that fluoride toothpaste was deadly! By now, as you can imagine, I'm panicking. I need those white teeth! Almost shaking with shock, I ask him, "So how do you brush your teeth?!" "The solution is simple, but less known - I will tell you. Simply use toothpaste... WITHOUT flouride."

Glad we solved that.

I had a fever on Thursday, so we stayed inside most of the day 'cause I was sick as a dog. But, being stuck inside made me feel like a horrible missionary, so Elder Toole and I went out for a few hours in the afternoon (not the best idea for my health, it turned out, but no matter).

I got to witness a baptism this past Friday -- one of Brugge's investigators got baptized. It was a really good experience, seeing the fruits of missionary labors. Elder Toole's old trainer, still serving in Brugge, turns to Elder Toole and I, and says, teary-eyed, "that's what it's all about, guys."

That's what it's all about. Helping people come closer to Christ. Not to mention the Kortrijk branch is still my absolute favorite -- so adorable. That's why we're sticking it out in this little Belgian town. There are ups, there are downs, there are times you think you'll die of stress, but you need to remember what it's all about.

Until next week. Use toothpaste carefully. I hope to see you all in the shelter this December.

--Elder Bonney

Elder Eastmond and my last minute together. We had bought matching ties. I miss that elder.

 Elder Toole and I, taken a couple weeks ago on P-day -- before we knew we'd become companions.

Week 12: "Which street corner would be most comfortable for sleeping on?"

 September 2, 2013

Hello everyone!

Once again, I am strapped for time. Our branch president is giving Elder Eastmond and I a P-day tour of Ieper, a historical WWI city. We have a train to catch. But first, gather round, boys and girls. I have a story to tell.

Last Thursday, my companion had to go up to the mission headquarters in Leiden, Nederland, with another missionary in our district -- Elder Bishop. So, we had exchanges: I would work with Elder Toole, Elder Bishop's companion, in their city in Brugge. On Wednesday, we met up with the Brugge elders and the zone leaders at around 9 PM in Gent, another city in our district. As our companions drove off with the zone leaders, Elder Toole (who is also a greenie) and I watched them drive away in shock and realized we had no clue where we were. We eventually found the Gent elders and their apartment (where we were supposed to stay the night), and everything was okay.

The next day, Elder Toole and I got to Brugge. Now, Elder Toole and I were in the MTC together -- he was in a different district, but we know each other pretty well. We've both been out for about six weeks now. He is a great missionary, but he has big struggles with Dutch. It was okay, though -- we had a day of miracles, and through knocking doors, ended up finding two new investigators and teaching two unplanned lessons. As greenies! Super cool. As we finished one lesson, we turned the corner, high-fived, and I said, "who needs our trainers? We should just be companions!" While moon-walking down the sidewalk. We had a good laugh -- of course we need our trainers! There's no way we could do it without them. I mean, we've only been out for six weeks.

Elder Toole is my new companion.

Transfer calls came in yesterday, while Elder Eastmond and I were biking home. I heard Elder Eastmond say, "Apeldoorn? I'd love to." with a look of shock on his face. That was the moment I knew he was leaving me -- I picked up my bike and threw it into a bush on the side of the road. On Wednesday, Elder Eastmond is becoming a zone leader and moving up to Apeldoorn in the Netherlands. Elder Bishop is becoming the new district leader and getting a new greenie. And Elder Toole is coming down to Kortrijk. We'll be co-senior companions together (and once you go senior, you rarely go back). So, we had our junior-companion childhood stolen away. I guess it's time to be responsible. Time to have more faith than ever before.

This also means that my address stays the same! For those who have been wondering, my address is:

Elder John Bonney

Jan Persijnstraat 20/B3 bus 1

8500 Kortrijk

Belgium

Any letter will get here from America with three forever stamps. If you've written me a letter -- I love you.

Keep calm and carry on.

-Elder Bonney

PS -- The photo is from last week on P-day, taken in Brugge. I'm with some sort of troll (I refuse to believe he's a devil). I was not comfortable in this picture. His hand was touching my back.